Holiday discounts don’t just apply to toys and clothes, Columbia SC real estate may have a great deal for you too.
Why You Might Find a Great Deal Now on Columbia SC Real Estate
Most people aren’t looking to move during the holidays, but it’s not out of the ordinary for the average home that’s on the market during this time of the year to see its price slashed somewhere between $2,000 to $10,000. Try finding price cuts like that on black Friday!
Homebuyer traffic is very low in the winter, so usually only the most serious sellers have their homes for sale during the holidays.
Buying Columbia SC real estate in the off-season can have many benefits for buyers.
To entice buyers further, sellers will throw in extra “gifts” in the light of the holiday season, such as washers, dryers, refrigerators, even sometimes flat screen TV’s at no extra cost.
The competition among buyers is also low during this time, making the bidding process easier. Mortgage lenders also have a lighter load, so they are more likely to concentrate on you more or process your deals quicker.
So if you’re thinking of buying Columbia SC real estate, but your natural tendency is to “wait until after the holidays”, it might pay you big dividends to see what kind of deal you can make on that new home now, while it’s “on sale for the holidays.”
Like all the holiday ads always say, “Time is running out, so buy now for the best deals.” Columbia SC real estate may never be this low again.
Columbia SC real estate, as well as real estate all across the country, seem to definitely be affected by Presidential elections.
A recent poll by Harris Interactive on behalf of MortgageMarvel.com asked consumers if the presidential election would cause them to delay home purchases if they were in the market for a new home. A full 25 percent of Americans surveyed would prefer to know who our next president will be before putting a down payment on a house.
While it’s disheartening to think that a full one-quarter of Americans surveyed would avoid buying a home until we have a new president in office, it’s not all bad news. More than half of the respondents — 53 percent — said the uncertainty surrounding the election would not affect their home buying decisions at all. Seventeen percent of respondents said they were unsure how the election would affect their decision and only four percent said the election uncertainty would prompt them to make a home purchase before the presidential race was over.
What about you? Does the upcoming Presidential election have any effect for you buying Columbia SC real estate? We’d love to hear your feelings about this.
While there are many advantages to owning Columbia SC real estate, 
the tax benefits are some of the most important to consider. For decades, the Federal Government has incentivized homeownership through tax benefits that are not available to renters. These benefits not only help reduce the homeownership costs, but also the costs of buying and selling a home. In order for a homeowner to take full advantage of most benefits, you must itemize your taxes.
1) Mortgage Interest Deduction
The mortgage interest deduction (MID) is easily one of the best tax benefits available to homeowners. After searching, finding, and purchasing Columbia SC real estate for sale, a new homeowner is able to deduct all the interest paid on their mortgage payments. For the first few years of the loan, interest tends to be the largest component of the mortgage payment. Because of this, the MID is a very beneficial tax advantage to homeowners.
2) Property Tax Deduction
For income tax purposes, it’s possible to fully deduct the real estate property taxes paid on a first home. By taking advantage of these property tax deductions, a homeowner can effectively reduce their total tax burden. To learn more, check out Schedule A (Form 1040), line 6.
3) Capital Gains Exclusion
When considering Columbia SC real estate, it’s important for a buyer to develop a long-term plan that includes the capital gains exclusion. So long as a homeowner has lived in their home for two of the last five years, they can take advantage of the exclusion. Individuals can exclude up to $250,000, whereas couples can exclude up to $500,000. It’s possible to claim the exclusion once every 2 years.
Ultimately, there are a lot of tax advantages and benefits available to homeowners — the tricky part is finding them. For those who wish to learn more about these tax advantages and others, seek out a certified public accountant (CPA) or tax attorney to assess all the available options.
If you’re wanting to take advantage of the tax benefits of owning Columbia SC real estate in 2012, you’ll need to close on your home before December 31st. With the amount of time it’s taking many lenders to approve and close on a mortgage these days, the sand is seeping out of the hourglass for you to purchase and close in this calendar year.
There are certainly more than 5 benefits to owning a Columbia SC home. Yet some first-time buyers are skeptical of buying a home with the uncertainty surrounding the housing market.
The uncertainty many refer to when talking about the housing market involves the magic date when home values will start to increase again. Since no one knows when this may occur, the word uncertainty (when paired with the housing market) often reveals a negative connotation.
These are just 5 of the many reasons for buying a home this year:
Appreciation – Buying a home now (at current interest rates) can almost ensure your home’s appreciation in the future. Mortgage rates have never been lower and home prices in many parts of the country are down. This is the perfect recipe for home appreciation. In addition, many foreclosed homes are available for a fraction of the original cost. This can translate to a higher profit if you decide to sell once the market rebounds.
Property Tax Deductions – Real estate property taxes for a primary home and vacation home are fully tax deductible. The IRS provides detailed tax information for first-time buyers that may answer many questions about what deductions homeowners are eligible for.
Preferential Tax Treatment – If you own your home for more than a year and receive more profit than the allowable exclusion after the sale of your home, the profit will be considered a capital asset. Capital assets are given preferential tax treatment.
Building Equity – Many factors such as credit qualification, loan flexibility, and annual percentage rate (APR) contribute to the final decision of what type of mortgage loan best fits your goals. Yet, a new trend being used by some homeowners is to actually add money to their monthly payment to decrease the principal balance of their loans at a much faster pace. This trend is called equity building. Equity builders usually select a home loan with a lower interest rate (and a shorter term loan such as a 15-year fixed) to help build equity faster. This rapid payment process allows borrowers to:
- Pay off the principal balance faster
- Lock in near-record-low interest rates
- Shorten the length of their home loan
- Own their home faster
- Pay substantially less mortgage interest
Home equity is the largest single source of household wealth for most Americans.
Pride – Homeownership offers many benefits to many different types of people. For some homeowners, playing their music as loud as they want and painting the walls the color of their choice is a perk. For others, homeownership will permit them to build an NBA regulation size basketball court on their own property. For others, home ownership may allow them to build the indoor swimming pool of their dreams. No matter who you are, homeownership is a purchase, commitment, and journey that’s sure to bring you pride.
When the uncertainty surrounding the Columbia SC housing market fades and the market rebounds, homeownership may in fact transform that pride of ownership into profit through selling your little corner of the world.
You’ve been watching the Columbia SC real estate market for some time, and have decided you want to start thinking about buying your own home. Now what?
The first step is to get pre-qualified for a mortgage to give you an estimate of how much you can afford. Once you have an idea, you need to start thinking about saving for a down payment. Depending on the type of loan, you may need to save anywhere from 3% to 20% of the value of the home. Obviously, the larger the down payment, the lower the monthly payment will be.
Stay Motivated
Sometimes when you have a savings plan that could take years to complete, it can be hard to stay motivated. One way to stay on track is to visit open houses. Even if you’re not ready to buy just yet, you can see what you’ll be able to get when you reach your goal. It’s so much easier to stay motivated when you can start picturing yourself enjoying your new home.
Automate Your Savings
Nowadays it’s so easy to set up an automatic deposit into a savings account. You can set it up through your employer, by asking them to direct deposit a specific amount (or percentage) into a separate savings account. Some employers will even let you split your pay into three different accounts.
Or, you could also set up automatic transfers from your checking account to your savings fund. The benefit of doing this is that it would be easier to either cancel it (but you should avoid canceling this transfer, if possible) or changing the amounts.
Cut Out Un-Neccessary Spending
Almost every single article about saving money will tell you this. No need for me to explain in depth how little things add up. So, try to pack your lunch and reduce your daily, frivolous spending.
Look at ALL of Your Financing Options
You could tap into other resources you hadn’t thought about. For example, you could borrow from your 401k and pay a decent interest rate. Another option is to make a penalty-free withdrawal from your 401k or your IRA, if this is your first time buying a home. However, keep in mind you will have to pay taxes on the amount withdrawn.
If you have a Roth IRA, it’s even better. Since the money you put in this account has already been taxed, you don’t pay taxes on any withdrawals. Also, if this is your first home, Uncle Sam won’t penalize you for using these funds to buy a house either.
Of course, before you decide to do anything with your retirement funds, consult with your tax advisor.
Let Your Friends and Family Know About Your Plans
There are two reasons why this is important:
- With the holidays fast approaching, they will understand that you’re trying to save for a house and their gift expectations won’t be as high.
- You never know, they may even make a “donation” to your house fund for Christmas.
So there you go, some tips on how to make your goal of owning a Columbia SC home a reality.
Have any other tips? Please share them with us! Just click the comment link below and let us know your tips for saving that down payment.